


Fishing for Answers

by Leen_PhoenixRae



Series: Vamps & Slayers in DC [2]
Category: Angel: the Series, Buffy the Vampire Slayer, NCIS
Genre: DNA, Demons, Evidence, Gen, Vampires
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-07-28
Updated: 2015-07-28
Packaged: 2018-04-11 18:23:50
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,382
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/4446905
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Leen_PhoenixRae/pseuds/Leen_PhoenixRae
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Gibbs suspects something fishy is going on with the botched-up investigation he was leading his team in investigating, and the number one suspect on his list was the meek brunette Texan working for a high-class law firm who got themselves involved in his case somehow.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Fishing for Answers

GIBBS WATCHED THE PETITE BRUNETTE working alongside Abby in the lab.  Something wasn’t right and his gut tells him the brunette Texan had something to do with the chipmunk DNA that was found on the sample his team collected from the crime scene.

Fred Burkle worked for a fancy law firm with a branch in DC.  He has heard of Wolfram & Hart, and he knew the type of people said law firm represented.  It was a tough, competitive and very aggressive firm in the country – and all their cases often ends in their favour.

_Now_ why _would a fancy law firm be sticking their nose in their case?_ Gibbs wondered, replaying everything that his team has uncovered so far about this current case that made them hit a damn dead end all because Abby identified the fluid from the murder weapon as a chipmunk DNA! That mishap brought them back to square one.

Fred was currently conferring with Abby inside Abby’s haven – her lab – to make sure that the new sample the seasoned forensics expert was analyzing wasn’t tampered with.  Gibbs’ gut told him the first sample had TAMPERED written all over it, but he couldn’t prove _who_ tampered with the evidence; he had two suspects though, and both of them belonged to a firm he wasn’t really too keen on trusting: law firm.

Gibbs figured he’d been lurking outside for a while now.  Abby ought to have some good news for him by now and the Caf-Pow he was holding would be room temperature warm by the time he handed it to Abby if he lingered out here any longer.  He wanted to wrap this case ASAP, and he wouldn’t be able to do that if he dilly-dallied outside Abby’s lab.

“Got anything for me yet, Abs?” he asked as he breezed in to Abby Sciuto’s lab in his usual Gibbs style of breezing in.

The two dark haired women jumped in surprise when they heard his voice.  They were both deep in discussion about the latest result after all.  Abby turned to face him while Fred remained standing on the end of the table where the evidence sample was.

“Gibbs!” exclaimed the Goth scientist.  “Fred and I analyzed the sample over and over again.  We even took turns running the samples separately then together to make sure that nothing hinky happens like the last time I ran the sample and came up with that chipmunk DNA, which still bugs me.  Major Mass Spec and I are going to have a _very_ serious one-on-one when this is over, but so far today—”

Gibbs refrained from rolling his eyes as the ever so bubbly and hyper Goth started babbling once again.

“Abs, result?” Gibbs learned to be firm and be tolerable – to a point – when it comes to the quirky people in his team.

“Coyotes,” Fred answered before Abby could respond.

Gibbs’ attention was then turned to the timid Texan.  “What?” he barked.

“Coyotes,” Fred repeated obviously unruffled by his attempt at intimidating her.  “Or something similar,” she added.  “I’d say a coyote or a wolf.”

Gibbs was confused.  He turned to Abby for an explanation.

“Whoever killed the officer either handles a coyote or wolf _or_ it – meaning the animal – wandered over to the crime scene after the fact, hence its bodily fluid being left on the evidence,” she explained.

Gibbs chewed on that bit of explanation for a bit.  It was plausible.  A helluva lot better explanation than the chipmunk killer.  He thanked Abby and gave her the Caf-Pow then he turned to address Fred.

“Miss Burkle?”

Fred flashed him a dimpled smile.  “Please call me Fred.  In the office we do much with the formalities.”

Gibbs noticed how Fred and her boss, Angel, addressed each other.  He even picked up on Angel’s protectiveness towards meek and timid Fred Burkle.  He can tell that Fred and Angel are close, and no, it wasn’t in a sexual kinda way close.  Angel was overprotective of Fred like any brother, father or uncle should be towards his family.

“Fred?” he echoed.

“Yes,” she nodded.

“OK, _Fred_ ,” Gibbs tested calling her by her preferred name, “would you mind walking back to the squad room with me?”

“What for?  I mean, I am more help here with Abby than with you and your team upstairs,” she said.

True her forte was science just like Abby, but he wanted to interrogate her about her involvement in the tampering of the first sample.  He couldn’t prove that she did it though, but she was the only person in the room who could’ve done that aside from Angel who excused himself from the squad room to check on Fred around the same time Abby left the lab to answer nature’s call.  Gibbs had to think fast on a plausible excuse to get her to accompany him to his preferred interrogation room: the elevator.

“You can explain to my team what you and Abby just found,” he answered.

Fred’s forehead furrowed at the centre.  “Couldn’t you explain it to them?”

“I can, but knowing some members of my team, they’ll have questions that I won’t be able to answer,” he shrugged.

“Oh, I see.  And you want to deflect those questions to me so I can answer them on your behalf?”

“Exactly,” Gibbs grinned, glad that she supplied his excuse for him.

“Okay,” Fred agreed and excused herself from Abby.  She followed Gibbs outside the lab and in to the elevator.

Gibbs hit the emergency stop button just as the elevator was about to make its ascent then turned to Fred.

“What’s going on?” Now Fred looked frazzled.

Good.  That was what Gibbs wanted her to be.  He needed to ruffle her somewhat cool veneer.  She was like her superior; neither she nor Angel seemed to look unfazed by the brutality of this case.

“I know you and your boss tampered with the first sample Abby ran,” Gibbs began, hitting straight for the bull’s eye as opposed to beating around the bush.

“You can’t prove that either I or Angel tampered with it,” Fred argued.

Gibbs noted how she replied.  She didn’t deny being involved in evidence tampering, but she also didn’t _admit_ to tampering with the evidence.

“I know,” he agreed.  He wouldn’t bluff about being able to prove Fred and Angel’s involvement.  He was after finding out _why_ they did it.

“Then why are we even having this conversation?” Fred made a move to reach for the switch to get the elevator moving again, but Gibbs blocked her by moving his body to the direction she was reaching for.

“You’re hiding something, and my gut’s telling me it’s something _very_ relevant to this case,” he told her.

“Maybe I am, maybe I am not.  Whatever it is, you will probably not understand so it’s better that you believe what Abby’s evidence result tells you and let’s wrap this case up.” This time Fred moved quicker than Gibbs anticipated and got the elevator moving once again.

Gibbs wanted to question her some more, but they already reached their destination and the elevator doors slid open.  Fred stepped out before he could press her for more answer and walked towards the bullpen to meet with his team.  Now Gibbs was left with an even bigger question as to what killed the officer and why he was killed, but he had very little answer to his question.  Fred’s cryptic reply only spurred him to dig some more.  He followed the brunette physicist from the elevator and found her speaking to Angel who was left to throw back ideas and theories with his team while he went to check with Abby.

Angel looked up when he heard him approach.  Fred must’ve filled him in on what just transpired in the elevator on their way to the bullpen.  Gibbs didn’t need a genius to read the look on the other man’s face.  Angel nodded at him then returned his attention back to his co-worker.

Now Gibbs was _really_ intrigued about what really killed that damn officer!  Fred and Angel were covering up something, but he couldn’t sniff it out since both of them were keeping a tight lid on it.  Whatever the mystery was behind the officer’s death he wanted to know.


End file.
